Book prop

ABSTRACT

A book prop is provided for holding open a book in an inclined position for reading without obscuring any of the printed subject matter and providing a steady support regardless of the distribution of the pages of the book. The book prop can be made as two separate identical elements or as an integral piece.

Unlted States Patent 1191 1111 3,785,605

Parekh Jan. 15, 1974 [54] BOOK PROP 2,225,830 12/1940 Harris 281/33 1 1 lnvemon Hem-Maren, 20 woodclifl Ave 23121133 51332 ililiffffii.3111311: 13113334323 North Bergen, 07047 2,558,931 4/1951 Chase 281/33 [221 1972 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [21] Appl. No.: 219,423 286,004 2/1928 Great Britain 248/456 Related U.S. Application Data Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 36,228, May 11, 1970, abandoned.

U.S. Cl 248/455, 248/465, 281/33 Int. Cl A47b 23/00 Field of Search 248/465, 448, 451, 248/454, 459, 455, 456, 457, 458, 463, 464; 281/33 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1922 Miller 248/459 X 9/1949 Goldman 248/464 X Primary ExaminerRoy D. Frazier Assistant Examiner-Richard L. Stroup Attorney.iacobs & Jacobs [57] ABSTRACT A book prop is provided for holding open a book in an inclined position for reading without obscuring any of the printed subject matter and providing a steady support regardless of the distribution of the pages of the book. The book prop can be made as two separate identical elements or as an integral piece.

6 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures BOOK PROP The present application is a continuation-in-part of my co-pending application Ser. No. 36,228 filed May 11, 1970, now abandoned, the contents of which are hereby made a part hereof.

In the aforesaid co-pending application a book prop has been described which while generally satisfactory has been improved in accordance with the present invention so as to support both covers of the book either in the form of two separate and unconnected props or as a single integral prop having an extension for supporting the cover to which the prop is not physically attached. The present invention therefore provides an improved form of book prop which holds books in a steadier and firmer manner and which is particularly useful for comparatively large and heavy books, although it is applicable to hard cover or paperback books of all sizes. In the present invention also the manner of applying the book prop to the book cover is modified so as to avoid the necessity of performing a closed loop.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a rear perspective view of an open book to which the present invention has been applied;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken through the left hand cover and book prop of FIG. 1, but on an enlarged scale;

FIG. 3 is a further enlarged fragmentary section of the upper portion of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a form of fastening member of the buckle-type used with a modified form of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of such modified form of the invention wherein the book prop need only be physically applied to the back cover of a book FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view on an enlarged scale taken along line 66 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional elevational view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is an end elevational view partly in section showing the modified book prop of FIG. 5 in use.

Referring first to the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a flexible pliable strip 10 of a vinyl plastic or other synthetic plastic (preferably transparent) material or paper or cloth is passed around one cover 11 of book 12 and the ends 13,14 of such strip are overlapped andsealed as by means of sealing material or adehsive 15. The strip 10 is sufficiently long to accommodate books of a great variety of sizes and according to the size of the book the strip ends 13,14 overlap to a greater or lesser extent. [twill be seen that the manner of applying the strip to the book cover does not interfere in any way visually or otherwise with the use of the book and does not cover up any of the printed subject matter. The outer side of strip 10 is provided with a support member 16 which is held by or between the transverse members 17 which may be of adhesive material or are adhesively or otherwise secured to the surface of strip 10 for holding support member 16 in position while still allowing it to swing forward and away from the book cover 11. The support member 16 is secured adhesively or by heat adjacent its lower inner end to a connecting piece 18 having a fold line or groove 19 and an inner portion 20 of which is secured by heat or adhesive to the strip 10 at a suitable location so that when outstretched the support member 16 makes an angle of about with the book cover 1 l. The support member 16, thus, can be used to support a book in inclined open condition as will be observed from FIG. 1 and in addition the strip 10 even after its ends are secured together can-be rotated (slid around) upwardly or downwardly around the book cover 11 so that the book can be supported at any of a wide range of angles B (about 20 to almost to the flat surface on which the book is resting) to suit the reader and his reading position.

As will be observed from FIG. 1, there are two such units, one of which is disposed over each of the book covers as described, thereby providing a firm and steady holding of the book in desired position without the use of the hands. The individual props are very inexpensive and provide a simple means for assisting students and others in their reading while leaving both hands free for making notes or turning pages. The

props may be colored or provided with surface designs,

emblems, advertising, etc.

In the modified form of the invention shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, a two-part vinyl covered support member 16a is provided having an integral lateral foldable extension 16b hinged along the line H, FIG. 5, thus enabling the lateral extension 16 b to be folded over to 16a when the book is not being used. The support member 16a is suitably secured as by adhesive or heat to a plastic strip 10a as at 17a in the general manner of FIG. 2, but the lateral extension 16b requires no strip or other means of attachment to a book cover since, as will be seen for example from FIG. 5, when the closed book 12a is opened, the other cover will rest against and be supported by lateral extension 1612, the outermost end of which is provided with narrow plastic strips 10' of the same material as strip 10 or 10a, but as will be observed from FIG. 5, the narrow strips 10 are disposed generally in the shape of a triangle during use with their ends passing through the fastening member 21 of buck- Ie-like nature with slits 21', thereby permitting the strips 10' to be loosened or tightened (lengthened or shortened) as required and by turning the buckle-like securing member21 into the position shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the extending ends 10' can be positioned to rest against theinside of the front cover of the open book thereby providing additional stability to the book prop. In this way the strips 10' now serve the same function with reference to the extension flap 16b as the connecting'piece 18 does with reference to the flap 16a,that is to restrict any motion of the lateral extension flap 16b away from under the front cover 11a, in a similar way as the connecting piece 18 restricts the swing of the flap 16a away from the book cover 11. The book is, thus, now in the opened and locked position, ready to be used. When the book is closed and the flap extension 16b is folded back upon the flap 16a, the pieces 10 can be reversed back over strip 10 and up over a page of the book and can thus also serve as a book mark.

It will be seentherefore that when either modification of the'invention is utilized, a firm and steady support is provided even for relatively large and heavy books and both book covers are supported rather than only one as in my aforesaid co-pending application. The invention is intended particularly for use by students, and, in general, by avid readers of books, but is equally useful for librarians and others dealing regularly or extensively with books and their handling.

What is claimed is:

l. A book prop comprising support member means for the covers of a book to be held in open position at an inclined angle without obscuring the reading matter, said support member means including pliable strip material positioned around at least one book cover and having its ends overlapped and secured to hold the strip material snugly around such book cover, a support member secured to the pliable strip material and extending angularly to a support surface, the support member being angularly movable with relation to the strip material and a connecing member having a transverse fold line extending between and secured to the support member and the strip material, the pliable strip material being rotatable around its underlying cover to alter the angle of support of the book.

2. A book prop according to claim 1, wherein pliable strip material and a support member is applied and is rotatable with respect to each of the covers of the book.

3. A book prop according to claim 1, wherein the strip material is composed of pliable synthetic plastic.

4. A book prop according to claim I, wherein there is one support member means which has a lateral foldable and unfoldable extension for supporting the other cover of the book when the book is open.

5. A book prop according to claim 4, wherein said lateral extension is provided with narrow plastic strips attached thereto and extending therefrom and which pass through a securing member of buckle type.

6. A book prop according to claim 1 wherein there is one support member means which has a lateral extension for supporting the other cover of the book when the book is open. 

1. A book prop comprising support member means for the covers of a book to be held in open position at an inclined angle without obscuring the reading matter, said support member means including pliable strip material positioned around at least one book cover and having its ends overlapped and secured to hold the strip material snugly around such book cover, a support member secured to the pliable strip material and extending angularly to a support surface, the support member being angularly movable with relation to the strip material and a connecting member having a transverse fold line extending between and secured to the support member and the strip material, the pliable strip material being rotatable around its underlying cover to alter the angle of support of the book.
 2. A book prop according to claim 1, wherein pliable strip material and a support member is applied and is rotatable with respect to each of the covers of the book.
 3. A book prop according to claim 1, wherein the strip material is composed of pliable synthetic plastic.
 4. A book prop according to claim 1, wherein there is one support member means which has a lateral foldable and unfoldable extension for supporting the other cover of the book when the book is open.
 5. A book prop according to claim 4, wherein said lateral extension is provided with narrow plastic strips attached thereto and extending therefrom and which pass through a securing member of buckle type.
 6. A book prop according to claim 1 wherein there is one support member means which has a lateral extension for supporting the other cover of the book when the book is open. 